As his wife, Mari Lou, back center, looks on, Joel Holland of Sumner, Washington, throws his arms into the air after winning the 44th World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, California on Monday, October 9, 2017. It is the seventh victory for Holland. Holland’s pumpkin weighed in at 2363 pounds, the heaviest pumpkin […]

Gordy, the mascot at the 44th World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off, walks down the street in Half Moon Bay, California on Monday, October 9, 2017. Joel Holland of Sumner, Washington, won the competition with a pumpkin weighing in at 2363 pounds, the heaviest pumpkin ever in the history of the competition. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A surprised Cindy Tobek of Olympia, Washington looks to the crowd after she saw the weight of her 2002 pound pumpkin at the 44th World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, California on Monday, October 9, 2017. Tobek finished in second place behind Joel Holland of Sumner, Washington, with a pumpkin weighing in at 2363 pounds, the heaviest pumpkin ever in the history of the competition. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Surfers take advantage of the recent high surf to ride the giant waves at the Mavericks surf break near Half Moon Bay in January. The World Surf League may soon hold the permit for the Maverick’s big wave surf contest after Cartel Management sought approval of a sale through bankruptcy court Wednesday. (Patrick Tehan/Bay Area News Group file)

Beating the heat was no problem at Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, California, where temperatures hovered in the mid-60’s Monday morning, June 19, 2017. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

Beating the heat was no problem at Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, California, where temperatures hovered in the mid-60’s Monday morning, June 19, 2017. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

Temperatures in the mid-60’s lure beachgoers to Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, California, Monday, June 19, 2017. Inland temperatures are expected to hit the century mark for the second day in a row. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

Homer Henard, of Santa Cruz, watches as his dog, Skyler, catches a wave during the World Championships for Dog Surfing at Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, Calif., Saturday, Sept.10, 2016. The event brought together dog surfers to raise money for charity, and to bring home the gold. (Patrick Tehan/Bay Area News Group)

A canopy welcomes you to the tightly-knit community of Butano Canyon, near Pescadero. John Green/San Mateo County Times

Pigeon Point Lighthouse photographed in Pescadero, Calif., Tuesday, May 30, 2017. The 1871-era Pigeon Point Lighthouse, the tallest lighthouse on the West Coast, continues to deteriorate and hasn’t been restored in the 12 years since it was transferred from federal to state ownership. (Patrick Tehan/Bay Area News Group)

Culinary weekends, yoga classes and beachy pleasures are all part of the offerings at Baja’s Rancho Pescadero, a chic adults-only resort near Todos Santos. (Photo: Rancho Pescadero)

A deer walks among the ranch land north of Pescadero, Calif., on Tuesday , Oct. 5, 2016. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

An old concrete dam on Pescadero Creek, photographed Sept. 3, 2015, was later removed by a construction team, offering a route upstream for endangered Coho trout once the storms of winter start flowing. The dam created a beloved swimming hole at Memorial County Park near the town of Loma Mar, where kids searched for crayfish and floated on air mattresses in the chilly waters. But it also blocked the fish from making their swim from the Pacific Ocean to freshwater pools to spawn. The project, completed this month by the San Mateo County Resource Conservation District, has opened up 62 miles of creek habitat to the fish, whose populations have declined significantly. Two female fish were spotted last winter, but no fry were detected. This year, with the dam gone, hopes are higher. (Photo courtesy of the San Mateo County Resource Conservation District)

Enter the World Health Organization. Some think of WHO as an organization that focuses on epidemics and famine, but WHO has interests beyond hot-zone emergencies.

Among those interests is aging, a topic that is becoming increasingly important. Some 30 percent of San Mateo County will be 65 or over by 2030.

WHO has an initiative that encourages cities to work toward an age-friendly goal. The advantages of becoming age-friendly and the process involved in the WHO process are the topic of an upcoming summit hosted by Peninsula Family Service in collaboration with community partners including 70 Strong, a free directory and concierge service to resources for older adults.

So what makes an age-friendly city? And why is it a worthy goal?

An age-friendly city is friendly to everyone regardless of age. As WHO says on its website, there are wide-ranging benefits:

“Improving air and water quality protects growing children and older persons with environmental sensitivities. Secure neighborhoods are safe for children, youth, women and older adults. Barrier-free buildings and streets enhance mobility and independence of both younger and older persons with disabilities. Finally, the local economy benefits from the patronage of older adult consumers.”

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On Nov 9, we’ll explore these topics at the Age-Friendly Cities Summit and brainstorm with elected officials, health and human services stake holders and older adults to inspire every city to get on board. The keynote speaker, Anabel Pelham, led the effort to get all 15 Santa Clara County cities certified as age-friendly.

A gerontologist who started the Graduate Gerontology Program at San Francisco State University, Anabel is founding director of the Center for Age-Friendly Excellence (CAFE). She’ll be joined by David Canepa of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors as well as several other speakers.

The Age-Friendly Cities Summit is the first step toward participating in WHO’s process, which is rigorous enough so that only 500 cities have qualified worldwide so far. Among those is New York City, where the massive scale of a project like this could be daunting. New York decided to forge ahead just the same with the support of then-Mayor Mike Bloomberg.

That’s where San Mateo County finds itself today. But things that make for age-friendly certification are benefits that will be felt by the entire community. San Francisco and Santa Clara County have done it. Let’s encourage city councils throughout San Mateo County to take this step to strengthen our communities.

And if the other six counties want to make our goal their own, that would be a terrific investment in the Bay Area’s future.

Heather Cleary is executive director of Peninsula Family Service, which works to strengthen communities. The Age-Friendly Cities Summit will be held 9:30 am to 1 pm Nov. 9 at Sobrato Center for Nonprofits, 330 Twin Dolphin Drive, Redwood City 94065. Free event. RSVP to info@peninsulafamilyservice.org or call 650.403.4300.